A number of industrial applications including, but not limited to, medical devices, communication devices, long range magnetic imaging and navigation systems, as well as scientific areas such as physics and chemistry can benefit from magnetic detection and imaging with a device that has extraordinary sensitivity and an ability to capture signals that fluctuate very rapidly (bandwidth) all with a substantive package that is both small in size and efficient in power. Many advanced magnetic imaging systems can operate in limited conditions, for example, high vacuum and/or cryogenic temperatures, which can make them inapplicable for imaging applications that require ambient conditions. Furthermore, small size, weight and power (SWAP) magnetic sensors of moderate sensitivity, vector accuracy, and bandwidth are valuable in many applications.
Atomic-sized nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond lattices have been shown to have excellent sensitivity for magnetic field measurement and enable fabrication of small magnetic sensors that can readily replace existing-technology (e.g., Hall-effect) systems and devices. Distinguishing themselves from more mundane superconducting quantum interface device (SQUID) and Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) sensors that require extraordinary low temperature control, the subject technology describes the sensing capabilities of diamond NV (DNV) sensors that are maintained in room temperature and atmospheric pressure and these sensors can be even used in liquid environments (e.g., for biological imaging).